Tony has a date
by Look at me I'm Sandra Dee
Summary: This is what it takes to make them realise where they both belong, and who they belong with. TIVA. Starts off in their current relationship state (don't think anyone even knows what that is at the moment!), and then is definitely building towards fluff. Anyway, rate and review and let me know what you think/what should happen next! I don't own the characters or NCIS. x
1. Chapter 1

"What is the matter with you today Tony?", Ziva asked as she sat at her desk, eyeing her partner suspiciously as he sat at his. He had been acting strangely all day, moods shifting from excited schoolboy to looking almost…_guilty?_ She had been wanting to ask him what was the matter, and now that Gibbs and McGee had gone to tie up a loose end in the completed case leaving them alone at their desks, it was the perfect opportunity.

"Don't know what you mean", replied Tony as he stared deeply into his computer screen.

Unsatisfied by this, Ziva left her paperwork and sat on the edge of his desk, leaning into him.

"Tony, what is going on?"

Tony got up from his chair and walked around her, so he was standing in the middle of the bullpen. She turned to face him as he awkwardly scratched the back of his head and refused to make eye contact with her.

"I, uh, I have a…date…tonight Ziva"

Her heart immediately crumbled at the thought of him with another woman tonight. She knew he could see her face fall, even though she tried to hide it. He saw everything she tried to hide recently. She knew she shouldn't be so upset by the fact that Tony had a date. He wasn't _hers, _she didn't have any place to tell him to stay at home, alone, when he could be out with someone. They had been growing so close recently, and she had been taken aback by the sudden mention of anyone else in their lives.

His face fell with hers. He knew she was not okay with this, but when she smiled and asked why he was acting so strangely about it, he played along, even though he knew she had been hurt by the fact he was seeing another woman tonight. He played along because this was not the time or the place to discuss feelings, or relationships, or jealousy.

"It's just that, it's been a while you know? I've just been so busy lately I haven't had time to go out at all, so I, I guess I'm a little nervous"

To this explanation, Ziva smiled, somewhat half-heartedly, although that was not what she intended it to come across as.

"You will be fine, Tony"

And she turned and walked away. Just like that. Tony had said he was going on a date, and she acted like she was fine with it. He knew she wasn't. She knew she wasn't. After recent events, the whole world knew that she was not going to ever be fine with it.


	2. Chapter 2

As Ziva walked towards Abby's lab, somewhat angrily, her mind raced with the images of Tony on his _date. _Sat at a table in a fancy restaurant, talking, laughing…_touching. _Being close and intimate, taking everything she and Tony had and turning it into a game, all leading to one passionate exchange at the end of the night. Sex.

She hated herself for feeling like this. Why couldn't she just let it go? Tony had been on literally millions of dates before, and not once had she batted an eyelid. But this time, _this time, _she couldn't stop thinking about the way he held her hand after her nightmare, and the way he held her at the airport. The way he had been so kind in bringing Schmeil to her, in knowing exactly what she had needed. She couldn't stop thinking about him. And thinking about him with another woman was breaking her heart in a way she never even knew it could.

"ZIVA!"

Abby ran up to her and slammed her into a hug.

"H-hi, Abby", Ziva whispered, barely able to breathe through the loving, albeit violent, crushing of ribs and other vital body parts.

Abby took a step back and studied Ziva's face with her head tilted to one side.

"Tony told me about his date"

Her heart sank again. Just hearing those words. Seeing those images. Wanting him to herself, maybe not even as a relationship, not yet, but just to hold her, and keep her safe like he had done when her father had died. She knew none of those things could happen if Tony had another woman in his life, it was just impossible. It meant it would never turn into anything more.

"I am fine, Abby. Tony is not _mine, _we are not, _together, _why should I care who he goes on a date with?"

She brushed the comment off with a wave of her hand, but Abby wasn't finished with her yet.

"But it's _Tony_, Ziva! _Tony_! The guy who looked after you when you lost your family. The guy who let you into his apartment. The guy, who came all the way to _Somalia_ to save your life because he just, couldn't, live without you!"

Her words stung with hurt, and even though Abby could barely breathe by the end of her speech, Ziva could make out enough to realise just how much Tony had confided in her.

"I know who he is, Abby"

This cold reply just gained more sympathy from Abby, who looked at her with knowing puppy dog eyes, as if she too could see right through the barriers Ziva was putting up to hide her real hurt about him. _Damn, _she was losing her touch. First Tony now Abby, everyone was starting to see through her, less and less people were buying her "I'm fine", brush off. She made a mental note to work on this at a later date, and with that, she gave Abby a small smile, turned, and went to drive home, knowing that she would not have an unexpected guest in the form of pizza and a movie tonight.


	3. Chapter 3

She sat at home that night, reading. She had planned to watch a movie, but she didn't really enjoy it without Tony. He had the enthusiasm, not her, and besides, sitting on the sofa alone didn't really seem as appealing as the leaning of her head on his shoulder and his arm often straying round her shoulders that normally occurred. So there she sat, with her book, trying to forget what she imagined was happening on Tony's _date. _

It was about 9pm, and she had just finished a chapter in her book when there was a knock at the door. Confused as to who would be calling on her this late at night, Ziva dragged herself up from the couch and slowly opened it.

"Movie night?"

Her heart skipped a beat. No, scrap that. Her heart skipped four beats. She was greeted by the biggest grin she had ever seen, and it could only be coming from one person. Tony. He had turned up at her door with a pizza and a movie, and he was looking at her expectantly, waiting to be invited in. She couldn't help but beam with happiness as their shoulders brushed on his way in.

"W-what happened to your date?!"

He put the pizza down and explained to her while he put the DVD in the player.

"Well you see Ziva, as a man, you can't possibly go on a date with someone, and like it, and be interesting, when there's somewhere you wanna be a hell of a lot more"

He stood up from the DVD player as he said this and turned to face her directly. Even though he was looking at her from across the room, their eyes were as deeply intimate with the others as if they were inches apart.

"And someone you wanna be with"

As he said this he moved closer to her, until they were within touching distance. He smiled at her, his eyes not leaving hers, and Ziva felt her heart melt. He _had_ wanted to be with her after all. He _did _treasure their relationship recently, and he _did_ notice that it was going somewhere.

"So I cancelled. And I grabbed a movie, got a pizza, and I came to the place I would rather be"

She could feel the smile creep across her face as he moved towards the couch. She sat down next to him, and linked their arms, wanting him as close to her as possible at that moment in time. He had come to her apartment because he felt he belonged there. She leaned into him, put her head on his shoulder, and knew that for once in their lives, they both belonged.

He gently took her hand and entwined their fingers, tracing small circles in the back of her hand. He didn't know why he said he would go on a date with the other woman, whose name was fading rapidly from his memory, but he knew why he was here. He was here because although the woman…_Shelley?_ Yes, Shelley. He was here because although Shelley was pretty and funny and interesting…she wasn't Ziva. She couldn't ever be Ziva. And as he sat there with her head on his shoulder, and his arm now around her, he realised that no one could ever be her, or anywhere near close. He would always belong wherever she was.

As they both held onto each other as if for dear life, they knew that neither one was going to let the other go tonight. And they knew that dates, were most certainly, a thing of the past.


End file.
